Bushy Tails & Clever Minds

I saw a squirrel scurry along our fence with a walnut in his mouth the other day.  Here are some interesting facts about these furry rodents:

1.  Squirrel comes from the old French word "escurel" which has evolved into "ecureuil".
2.  The squirrel has over 200 species.
3.  New York City's Central Park is full of black squirrels.
4.  Exeter, Ontario is known for its white squirrels.
5.  Ground squirrels eat nuts, leaves, roots, seeds and plants.
6.  Tree squirrels eat bark, eggs, baby birds, nuts, acorns, berries and flowers.
7.  "Flying" squirrels can leap 150 feet.
8.  The African Pygmy Squirrel is only 5 inches long while the Indian Giant Squirrel is 3 feet long.
9.  The squirrel has four front teeth that never stop growing.
10.  Australia has no squirrels.
11.  Squirrels are clever creatures who have to remember where they stored their nuts each winter.
12.  Squirrels increase the tree population because they do not always eat all of the nuts they store; these nuts sprout into new trees.

Source:  http://animals.nationalgeographic.com.

Photo courtesy http://upload.wikimedia.org.